1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed to apparatus for through-connecting audio signals between a broadband network and audio sources and audio sinks.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Different audio sources and audio sinks should be connected to a broadband network. Examples of audio sources are microphones, record players or a radio tuner; examples of audio sinks are tape recorder devices or loudspeakers. The audio sources should be capable of being connected to a broadband network not only by way of a transmission bus, via a switching facility, but should also be capable of being connected to the audio sinks of a subscriber. Of course, the audio sinks can also be connected to the broadband network via an audio receiving bus. For example, the audio portion of a television program is transmitted via a broadband network. Of course, it is possible to produce arbitrary connections between audio sources and audio sinks with the assistance of a switching matrix network and also connect these to the broadband network. Such a switching matrix network, however, would be extremely complicated.